The present invention is generally related to the field or graphical display of images and, more particularly, is related to a system and method for updating images in a graphical display.
More and more, manufacturers of computer technology are providing internet related features and services along with their products, both to make such products more useful and to enhance marketability. For example, a computer manufacturer may oftentimes provide Internet access to those customers who purchase a computer therefrom. Manufacturers of printers may also provide various printing software along with the sale of a printer that gives customers additional applications for the printer in question.
Manufacturers of computer technology also may wish to include software that allows the advertisement of additional products or services they provide to users who purchase their products. For example, a manufacturer may include software with computer products that causes various text and images to be produced on a display screen as part of an appropriate graphical user interface to advertise special features or services to users.
To include such advertisements for features or services offered by a particular computer technology manufacturer with a product sold, the software that includes the advertisement may be stored in an appropriate storage medium such as a compact disk, etc., that is packaged with the product such as, for example, a printer before shipment to the end user. Unfortunately, significant manufacturing lead times may be required to reduce the software to the storage mediums and to package the software with the products sold by the manufacturer. In addition, some manufacturers may seek to create a significant inventory of product before it is actually released to the public so that a proper supply is available to meet the new demand for the product. These lead times may amount to several months.
During the time that software is stored, packaged, and actually sold to an end user, it is possible that the advertisements for the features and services contained within the software included with a manufacturer""s product may be obsolete. Specifically, during this time period new features or services may be available to accompany the end product including Internet services, etc. Also, additional software applications may be made available via the Internet, etc. that the end user may wish to employ. Also, new products may be released that a manufacturer may wish to bring to the attention to the user.
The present invention provides a system and method for updating a banner in a graphical display. Briefly described, in architecture, the system comprises a processor circuit in a client device that includes a processor and a memory, both of which are electrically coupled to a local interface. The local interface may comprise, for example, a data bus and accompanying control bus. Also electrically coupled to the local interface is a network interface such as a network card that couples a network to the local interface. The system includes a display device electrically coupled to the local interface.
The system further includes banner update logic stored on the memory and executable by the processor. The banner update logic particularly comprises logic to automatically initiate a download of a remote banner located at a predefined address on the network to the memory, and logic to display a local banner stored in the memory on the display device upon a failure to download the remote banner to the memory. The banner update logic may further comprise logic to display the remote banner on the display device upon a successful download of the remote banner to the memory.
The present invention can also be viewed as providing a method in a client device for updating a banner in a graphical display on a display device. In this regard, the method can be broadly summarized by the following steps: automatically initiating a download of a remote banner located at a predefined address on a network to the client device for display in the graphical display on the display device, and displaying a local banner in the graphical display on the display device upon a failure to download the remote banner to the client device. The method may further comprise the step of displaying the remote banner in the graphical display on the display device upon a successful download of the remote banner over the network to the client device.
The various embodiments of the present invention disclosed herein address the concern of providing up-to-date advertising and information in the form of a graphical banner discussed above by facilitating the display of an up-to-date banner downloaded from a remote server maintained by the specific manufacturer or other entity.
Other features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent to one with skill in the art upon examination of the following drawings and detailed description. It is intended that all such additional features and advantages be included herein within the scope of the present invention.